Leronlimab Under Evaluation for Potential Treatment of Coronavirus

CytoDyn and IncellDX in discussions with potential partners about the use of leronlimab to treat 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV)

VANCOUVER, Washington, Jan. 28, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CytoDyn Inc. (OTC.QB: CYDY), (“CytoDyn” or the “Company"), a late-stage biotechnology company developing leronlimab (PRO 140), a CCR5 antagonist with the potential for multiple therapeutic indications, today announced that it is exploring leronlimab as a potential treatment for patients infected with the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), a rapidly spreading virus and potential worldwide emergency.

“Leronlimab has both the potential to enhance the cellular immune response by suppressing Treg cells that, in turn, inhibit the anti-viral T-cell responses and the potential to repolarize macrophage activity,” said Bruce Patterson, M.D., chief executive officer and founder of IncellDx, a diagnostic partner and an advisor to CytoDyn. “Lung (alveolar) macrophages in coronavirus infections have been implicated as a contributing factor to significant morbidity and mortality of the infectious disease. Leronlimab could potentially synergize with other retroviral therapies that currently being used for the potential treatment of 2019-nCoV.”

Leronlimab has shown no drug-related serious adverse events in nine clinical trials with more than 800 patients and has been previously used in combination with protease inhibitors used in HIV therapy, which could be potentially used to treat the specific strain of the 2019-nCoV.

Nader Pourhassan, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of CytoDyn, added: “We support efforts to identify new and potential treatments to limit the spread of the 2019-nCoV, which is affecting people on a global scale at an accelerating rate. We look forward to advancing discussions with potential partners to study leronlimab as a treatment option for this deadly virus.”

About 2019 Novel Coronavirus
The 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China.¹ The origin of 2019-nCoV is uncertain and it is unclear how easily the virus spreads.² 2019-nCov is thought to be transmitted person to person through respiratory droplets, commonly resulting from coughing sneezing and close personal contact.³ Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, some causing illness in people and others that circulate among animals.⁴ For confirmed 2019-nCoV infections, symptoms have included fever, cough and shortness of breath.⁵ It is believed that symptoms of 2019-nCoV may appear in as few as two days or as long as 14 days prior to exposure, and that symptoms in patients have ranged from non-existent to severe and fatal.⁶ There are currently no known anti-viral treatments effective at suppressing 2019-nCoV.⁷